The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: An Historical Inspiration

I was a child of the 80s and 90s and anyone growing up fell in love with the character of Indiana Jones. But outside of the movies there was an incredible tv series done by Steven Spielberg in 1992 which chronicles his adventures during his childhood and young adulthood. 

This is a great description:

"The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones" takes a young version of the popular character on a journey through the early 20th century where he learns about some of the most important historical events of the era. 

Young Indy meets historical figures, including Ernest Hemingway, Ho Chi Minh, Eliot Ness, Louis Armstrong, Pablo Picasso and Winston Churchill. Traveling from the game reserves of Kenya to the bohemian streets of Paris and the Great Wall of China, these are the adventures that shape Indy's future as one of cinema's greatest heroes.”

Traveling the world to some of the most exotic places in the world, even fighting in World War 1 as a soldier and spy, he meets famous historical figures that we all know about, he learns lessons in life and love. One of Indie’s quotes from “The Raiders of the Lost Ark”: “It’s not the years, honey. It’s the mileage.” We begin to understand how he becomes the character and adventurer we all know and enjoy in the movies. Indie says: “I’m not sure why, but I’ve always wanted to see what was out there over the next hill. I like exploring.”

It was an amazing snapshot of history at that time and really gave a glimpse of what the world looked like outside of my dull lower middle class Canadian suburban life. It opened my eyes to how big the world really is. And it really made history come alive to me. 

Between my trip to Japan and England the show awakened in me a tremendous eagerness to travel and explore the world. Reading about the financial investing greats like Jim Rogers provided me the roadmap to do this in the late 90s. A unique time of globalization in our world. 

If you have not seen the show it’s on Disney+ and it’s worth watching. There are universal life lessons in there and may awaken your sense of adventure as well. Or at least start to understand the grand sweep of history and the 20th century ended up the way it did.